Chapter 11, Powers of Horror Summary and Analysis

Celine is only one example out of many authors who deal with the abject. Kafka, Lautreamont, Baudelaire, and many others address many of the same topics. Nonetheless, Celine is, in a certain sense, the perfect abject writer because for him abjection is total. It pervades his depictions of sexuality, politics, history, and personality—the abject is everywhere.

One might reasonably ask what the purpose of studying the abject is. After all, if abjection merely produces horror, it does not seem terribly beneficial, even as a purely academic exercise, to peer into that particular abyss. However, insofar as the abject—and the repression of it—has been a guiding force in the history of mankind, understanding it and the effects it has on history is necessary for fighting the power structures which exist...